Survivors
by freedom-born803
Summary: A (hopefully!) spiced up version of a worn out chiche idea: Mace and Kit travel the galaxy to find other surviving Jedi after order 66. Chapter five is now up! It certainly didn't take long this time :)
1. Chapter 1

**This is a fan fiction based on an overused idea that I am transforming into a combination of action, humor, possible drama and some tragic events that will all come together in some happy or fun way by the end. The story itself is based on the Star Wars movies, not the books, so comments of "that can't possibly happen" are not allowed XD **

**The storyline is as follows: what if a handful (five) of the Jedi that were thought to be dead after episode three actually weren't? **

**Once again, the story is meant to entertain. If you have any suggestions to make the story more interesting or fun along the way, I like feedback. For now, I'm going to stop rambling and begin. Be warned that the first chapter is a bit intense for my writing style.**

* * *

_This can't be death. It can't be, _Mace Windu thought. It was one of the few thoughts he could process in his half-conscious state. The rest of his mind was lost in the excruciating pain that overwhelmed his senses. Not even the force could dull it. Over the burning of the electrocution and his amputated forearm, he now faced multiple fractures from the fall, and a concussion that seemed to drill into his sanity.

But how was he alive? How could anybody survive such a fall? Could the force have possibly been strong enough in him at that instant to save him? It seemed incredibly unlikely… but not impossible.

Mace kept his eyes closed, attempting once more to make sense of things. Everything seemed to blur together in his mind… but a few scenes stood out.

Agen Kolar was dead. Saesee Tinn was dead… Kit Fisto was dead. Palpatine… the sith lord… Palpatine couldn't have asked for a better outcome. As for Mace, he recalled Anakin's betrayal, plummeting out the window… reaching into the force…

Yes. He had caught himself. It certainly didn't make for a smooth landing, but it kept him alive. Perhaps that wasn't the best idea. Mace closed his eyes tighter, slipping back into the atmosphere of pain, practically drowning in it. What could he possibly do in this state to save the jedi? The republic? The galaxy?

"Master Windu!" Yes, that was his name, but was it in his head? The voice seemed so familiar… but it was the voice of a dead man, Mace knew. He witnessed the death. There was no way.

"Master Windu… Mace?" The headache dulled ever so slightly as a strong hand lifted his head off the ground. This was real. "Mace. Wake up…"

Opening his eyes was practically pointless; the concussion was blurring his eye sight as well as his thought process. Still, the unfocused vision that Mace was granted allowed him to see the concern on the face of his brother.

"Master Fisto," Mace managed to whisper, amazed at the vulnerability in his voice. "I thought… you were dead…"

"I'm fine, and you will be too."

Mace shook his head 'no' as the nautolan lifted him off of the ground. It could have been several days since the betrayal had occurred. There was no way of knowing. Death, however, seemed to be approaching quickly.

"Don't shake your head at me," Kit scolded through his teeth. "You're going to be ok. You can't leave me here alone."

Mace didn't object as Kit began to walk, but was a bit concerned with the limp in his stride. It almost bothered him as much as what he had just heard.

"Alone…?"

The tone in Kit's reply was unrecognizable. Compared to his normal, cheerful self, he seemed so empty. Depressed, even.

"We're the last ones, Master Windu. Everyone else is dead…"

* * *

The medical facility that Kit found contained no Jedi healers. Still, he thought, it would have to do. There were already plenty of doctors tending to Mace. They assured Kit that he would be alright, and that was all that mattered. Being the last trained Jedi Master in existence… There would be no hope.

Mace was unconscious again, but the doctors were still hard at work. A couple of them took some time to tend to Kit's injury as well, where Palpatine had slashed him across the waist with his saber. Kit shivered at the memory. Even with his humility in battle, he expected to be better than that.

"Your friend will survive," one of the younger females announced. "His bones have been set back in place, and we are working on a new hand for him now. There's no severe head trauma that we know of."

Kit returned the woman's words with a doubtful gaze. "That you know of…? What happens if you're wrong…?"

The woman shrugged sheepishly. "I suppose he wouldn't act much like himself."

"Oh." Kit couldn't refrain from grinning slightly. "That may not be all bad."

* * *

**I'm kind of liking this story already, but it won't continue without support, so be sure to comment! ALSO, THIS IS IMPORTANT! I'm going to try it out: At the end of each chapter, I'm going to ask one opinion question and leave it to the interested readers to answer. The most popular answer affects the story. SO, with that being said:**

**QUESTION FOR THIS CHAPTER: When Mace wakes up in the next chapter, should he still act like himself, or will the hit on the head give him a slight (and I mean it when I say slight) personality change? **


	2. Chapter 2

**Hey Guys! **

**Thanks for the feedback! It really means a lot! The opinions I got were all different, but mostly revolved around the same idea, so that really helped XD **

**And with that being said… I don't think I put a disclaimer on chapter one… *too lazy to check* I'll just put one in right here:**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Star Wars or any of the Star Wars characters, settings, ect. Nor does George Lucas. Disney does. (…I'm… still getting over that….)**

Mace's severe wounds healed in a couple weeks, a much shorter time period than any ordinary being could dream of healing. It would still be several more weeks, however, before a full recovery could be made.

Kit wasn't entirely confident with the Korun master's recovery, but it was evident as the days went on that progress was, in fact, being made. It didn't take Mace very long to learn the basic controls of his prosthetic hand. He didn't seem to be in much pain anymore, but something was still wrong.

It was the quiet, Kit realized. Mace rarely spoke. When he did, it was only in response to a question, and it was never longer than a two or three word answer. The reason for this was still unknown.

Kit took a deep breath and approached the silent Mace Windu, who was staring emptily out the large glass window of the medical facility. This was not the first time Kit had to be a conversation starter, nor would it be the last, but with the amount of loss that ran the two Jedi Masters into the ground, it would certainly be the most difficult.

"What's on your mind?" he asked softly. There was no need to hide the concern in his voice; there was nobody to hide it from.

Mace kept a neutral expression as he shook his head, silently stating that he didn't want to speak. As tempting as it was to back down and leave him that way, Kit figured it wouldn't hurt to press on a little bit longer.

"This is about the Jedi, isn't it?"

Mace turned to face him, a glimpse of pain flashing through his eyes before he returned his gaze back to the window. "Yes."

"Anybody in particular you're grieving over?" Kit took a seat across from Mace, keeping a respectable distance.

"No." Mace took a quick look around the room before turning to fully face Kit. "Why would there be?"

Kit shrugged innocently. "I don't know. Just wondering. There's always somebody that you care about more than anybody else. So goes life."

"That doesn't sound very… Jedi like," Mace observed. "You know that we are not to have emotional attachments." His words, as well as the volume and tone, still didn't sound very characteristic of him. At least he was talking.

"We're not supposed to," Kit agreed, "but everybody does anyway… Unless you were born into a completely emotionless place and raised to believe that emotion doesn't exist for your entire life."

Mace raised an eyebrow. "Ahem. I was."

Kit paused for a long time before replying to this. "Yes… I suppose, but the point still stands, and you didn't answer my question."

"Yes I did," Mace objected, raising his voice to a more normal level. "I said no. Was I unclear?"

Kit frowned slightly. "Oh. Right. I guess you did." He took a deep breath and exhaled slowly. "Sorry."

"You're grieving," Mace observed. He met Kit's eyes sympathetically. "Would you like to talk about it?"

Now it was Kit's turn to be solemn, as the memories drifted painfully back into his mind. "Just because we aren't allowed to have emotional attachments doesn't mean that we all follow the rules…" He looked for any hint of disapproval in Mace's eyes, but saw none. "Aayla. It's Aayla. We've broken the code time after time… and I suppose we've done a few things that we're not proud of, but we love each other. That was worth everything…. But… but she's… dead now."

"Are you sure?" Mace asked in reply. "Focus. Reach into the force. Maybe you'll see what I can see."

"What do you see?" Kit asked uncertainly. "I don't see anything. Well, nothing significant."

Mace sighed. "You mean to tell me that you can't sense the other survivors?"

Other survivors? There was no way. Kit made another attempt to reach into the force, to make sense of things. The distress of his loss overshadowed it; he saw absolutely nothing.

"I think you cracked your skull," Kit commented. "There's nobody else."

"I most certainly did not, and there _are_ others." Mace grabbed Kit's arm and pulled him to his feet. "I'll tell you what we're going to do. We're going to rebuild the Jedi order, gathering as many survivors as we can. When we've expanded enough, we _have to_ take out the sith lord."

"Without getting slaughtered in less than five minutes," Kit threw in.

"More like five seconds."

Kit shook his head. "This is awfully rash of you."

"Rash? Rash?" Mace motioned for Kit to follow him as he strode out of the medical facility, pushing any thoughts of pain to the back of his mind. "We're saving the galaxy. That isn't rash, it's… quick thinking."

"Oh, ok." Kit snorted. The great thing about Mace was his attitude. He could pull anybody out of anything without even meaning to. "If it isn't rash, where are we going?"

"I… have…. Absolutely no idea," Mace admitted. "But we'll figure something out."

"You're insane," Kit stated, but with a smile. "How about this: you can do all of the ra- ahem… 'quick thinking', and I'll be the leader."

Mace shook his head disapprovingly. "You're not really the leading type, Kit."

"You can't do everything though," he snapped back.

"Of course I can. I'm Mace WIndu."

Kit sighed. "You're… extremely complicated. But it's ok. I still love you."

Kit noticed Mace going silent for a lingering moment as they walked. It was almost amusing. "And I find you to be… a decent… person as well."

The silence continued, only to be broken when Kit could no longer contain his laughter. "When this is all said and done, I'm putting you in therapy. Fisto's Therapy for the Philophobic."

"Please," Mace groaned. "Don't even start. In a traumatic situation like this, you still have to goof off. I swear to the force."

"Mmhmm," Kit nodded dramatically. "And how do you feel about that?"

"This is going to be a long day."

A couple of hours and a borrowed ship later, the duo were off to search for surviving Jedi. Although anticipating a rough journey, they had absolutely no clue what they were getting themselves into…

**Yay for plot development!**

… **I can't think of a question for this chapter though, so… what did you think? :D **


	3. Chapter 3

**Hello! I'm back! **

**Before my chapter, I have to give a quick shout out to StarWarsHarryPotterfangirl27 88. Your comment made me feel so good about my writing, I woke up from my four hours of sleep, jumped out of bed, and exclaimed "I don't care that I'm exhausted! I'm happy! People on fanfiction love me!"**

**Seriously, I did. Honestly, I really, really love all of your support, and that goes to everybody who has given feedback (or favorite/followed the story). The comments I receive are what drives me to continue writing, so thank you to everyone for that!**

* * *

"You look bored," Kit commented. Mace was piloting their borrowed ship silently, his dull eyes staring ahead with absolutely no emotion. There was a solemn ambience about him, however. Any hint of personality didn't last longer than a few fleeting moments before he returned to this state.

Kit paced about, waiting a moment longer for the reply that never came. "Do you know where we're going yet?"

"Yes," was the simple reply. There was no indication as to where or why.

"Sooo," Kit continued, taking a seat, "Felucia, right?"

"No." Mace set coordinates to put the ship on autopilot, just long enough that he could close his eyes and meditate for a few moments.

"Alright," Kit replied. "Cool. Felucia, then. Sounds like a good plan to me."

"I said 'no', Kit." The Korun master's voice remained impassive. He didn't shift out of his meditative state despite the slight twinge of irritation that gnawed at him.

"Yes and no mean the same thing. Sometimes. Besides, you said that Aayla might have survived. Shouldn't we go down there and check?"

It didn't seem illogical, but something else was telling Mace 'no'. Whether it was the force or his gut, there was a reason that they were moving in the opposite direction.

"You and your emotional attachments are blinding you from the force," he scolded, opening his eyes and switching the autopilot off. "If Aayla is alive, we'll find her. I'm going to go where the force guides me."

"Well," Kit sighed, attempting with some success to imitate Mace's emotionless tone, "Maybe I want to go where my heart guides me."

"Come on, Fisto. That's cheesy and you know it."

The trip continued in silence. Kit wasn't planning on furthering the conversation about Aayla to Mace; he clearly didn't understand. The lack of care was beginning to get under his skin, however. Kit took the only approach to the situation that he knew how: doing everything in his power to nonchalantly get under Mace's skin in return.

"Continuing our conversation prior to boarding this ship," he began, smirking.

"Spare me."

Kit laughed quietly and leaned back in his chair. "Fisto's Therapy for the Philophobic, remember?"

"Really. I don't need therapy, and just because I like to follow the rules that have lasted throughout the ages, unlike some, doesn't mean that I fear love."

The nautolan continued to smile mischievously, unruffled by his companion's irritability. "When I say a word, you say the first word that comes into your mind."

Mace sighed, shaking his head to himself. "Fine. Whatever makes you happy."

"Jedi," Kit began, throwing out the first word that could come to his head.

"Dead," Mace replied quietly without hesitation.

Kit paused for a long moment. "Peace."

"Dead," Mace replied again.

Kit frowned. "Anakin."

"Traitor."

It was becoming clear, although Kit was merely joking and passing time with this whole therapy thing, that Mace had way too much on his mind. Perhaps a bit more randomness would be better for the cause.

"Glee Anselm," Kit threw out randomly.

Mace shrugged. "Water."

"Time machine."

"We wish." Mace let out a long sigh.

"Council."

"Stubborn."

"Force," Kit continued, giving less time between words.

"Life," Mace replied effortlessly.

"Blaster."

"Uncivilized."

"Clone."

"Untrusting."

"Dream."

"Force."

Kit smiled as he continued. "Power."

"Dangerous."

"Wisdom."

"Yoda," Mace replied.

"Humor."

"You."

"Love," Kit finally said, in the same voice, tone, and speed as the other words.

"Ser-… … unnecessary," Mace replied. "Forbidden. Distracting. Are we done?"

"What were you about to say?" Kit demanded. "You're not allowed to change your word. That's cheating!"

Mace glanced apathetically in the other direction before proceeding to stare out the window. "Well… on a relevant topic, we were _going _to go Mygeeto first. It appears that we're going to have to take a detour."

"To Felucia," Kit agreed. "That is a wonderful plan. No wonder you're the leader, you clever person you."

"We're not going to Felucia, Kit! Not yet. We're going to go to Mygeeto. That's where master Mundi was last located. I have a strong feeling that he is still alive, but there's something wrong."

"Well…. What's in the way?" Kit asked in reply.

Mace pointed out the window. Several specks were surrounding the distant planet. "Apparently our fallen troops are still around." Mace took a look at the controls of the ship, accessing the radar to get a better look. "There are way too many of them. There's no way we can make it through yet."

Kit observed the ships in the distance, nodding thoughtfully. "Yes. I see that. You are absolutely right. There's no way we can get through that. Nope. So hey. I have a better idea." With that, he reached over Mace's shoulder and punched coordinates into the autopilot system. "We can hunt for survivors in a more remote area until the troops clear out. Why don't you try contacting Ki. Make sure he's ok, if he's alive. And if he is, he can wait it out while we…"

"Go to Felucia?" Mace growled. "Are you really still arguing with me?"

"Yes," Kit replied. "I am. And I'm going to start begging you if you don't comply peacefully. You don't want to see me beg."

"And if I still don't listen?" Mace challenged.

"I'll… continue to bother you about love… or something to that effect."

Something was wrong with that location, terribly wrong. If it wasn't clear before, it was practically screaming in Mace's face now. It was strange to him how Kit couldn't feel it. It was so obvious…

The nautolan Jedi did have an argument, though. If Aayla was alive, they couldn't leave her down there just because of a feeling in the force… but whatever the danger may have been, was it as suicidal as attempting to land on a planet swarming with fallen clones?

Perhaps. Perhaps not. Lives were at stake no matter which way the duo chose to go. With the importance of the mission, at least for the moment, his and Kit's safety was just as important as the safety of the Jedi who were yet to be found.

"Fisto, if we go to Felucia and die, what have we gained?"

"I'd die to save Aayla any day," Kit admitted.

"Would you let the Jedi go extinct to attempt to save Aayla? Even if you fail?"

Kit stared at the ground. "I shouldn't answer that. You wouldn't like it."

Danger. That's all Mace could wrap his mind around. There was so much danger. One wrong move could mark the extinction of the Jedi… but how much longer could he say 'no'?

"Kit… I'm going to try and reach Ki. You take over piloting. I'll be right back."

"To Felucia?" Kit asked, smiling hopefully.

"Whatever," Mace sighed.

* * *

**Fun stuff, no? Hehe. Question: Who do you think is right? Or, rather, who is less wrong? (dramatic voice) Will Kit's undying love for Aayla be the team's ultimate downfall? Will Ki-Adi Mundi be alright, or even alive? Will Aayla? Just how terrible could the danger possibly be? Tune in a couple days to find out! (dramatic music fades) **


	4. Chapter 4

**Hello, everybody. Long time no see. So my excuse is as follows: after a couple of days, I got the plague. (It's been going around the schools and everything. I was sick in bed for a few days). And then school picked up again. But you know. I'm here now. Things are getting busier and busier, so forgive me when some chapters come later than others. **

**Anyway, thanks again for all of the comments I received in my last chapter. One thing I must say is this: I'm not going to spoil who is alive and who isn't, but just because I insert names doesn't mean those particular people are alive. But it doesn't mean they're dead either. Bwahaha. If I haven't confirmed whether or not a particular person died, you won't know. So THERE! XD Onto chapter four**

* * *

"See? What did I tell you?" Kit gave Mace a smug grin as they stepped out onto the beautiful planet of Felucia. "There's no danger here."

"I can't believe you don't feel it," Mace replied softly. A quick scan of the conditions of the planet was enough; there had certainly been trouble there. The destruction was fairly obvious. On top of that, Aayla's signature through the force was beginning to fade. Finding her wasn't going to be easy.

Kit walked ahead a few strides, glancing behind him impatiently. "If something is about to attack us, I'm sure I'll know about it in time."

"Well," Mace countered, "when I decide that I want to put the trust of our lives in the hands of a love-drunk nautolan, you'll be the first to know. Until then," he continued, intentionally stepping in Kit's path of travel, "I'm going to lead."

Kit sighed inwardly and followed. There was no point in making things worse. "Fine, but if you walk us into whatever danger you sense, it'll be your fault."

"Yes, because it was my idea and my nagging that brought us here in the first place," he replied sarcastically.

Secretly, as much as Mace chastised his nautolan companion about the unprofessional love interest, there was a secret hope and prayer that Aayla would be found alive. Everything would come together so smoothly from there.

After all, Mace figured, Kit Fisto had always been one of the greatest Jedi in their time. Who would ever know how long his secret relationship had been going on? It seemed rather unlikely that this was recent news. Perhaps the two had been together for years. Then there would be no debate over the risks of love, not with all that Fisto had accomplished.

"Can you stop thinking about me and focus on finding Aayla please?" Kit's voice was flat with a surprising lack of amusement for his character.

"Since when were you a mind reader?" Mace replied coolly. "I don't recall that ever being on your list of abilities."

Kit shrugged impassively. "It's not like you're keeping your guard up. You're practically speaking out loud. But seriously, I'm glad you're _almost_ as fervent to find Aayla as I."

Mace opened his mouth to reply, but stopped short. Trouble… this one couldn't be ignored; the force could have been slapping him across the face. It was right there in front of them. This particular threat was aimed at Fisto.

Before Mace could give a proper warning, the nautolan's green blade was ignited. It sliced the air with power and grace, connecting flawlessly with a red laser bullet. The bullet was deflected with precision, returning to the source and inevitably striking the unknown enemy, killing him instantly.

Kit sheathed his weapon and smirked in Mace's direction. "Told you I could handle it. But no, you just couldn't trust a 'love-drunk nautolan', could you?"

"Alright, here's the next plan of action," Mace suggested. "Shut the kriff up and go see what was trying to kill you."

"Fine, fine." Kit raised his hands in the air submissively and approached the growth where the unknown enemy had been hiding. "You're just changing the subject because you know I won."

"Might I remind you that we are engaging in no such competition," Mace replied. "This is a team effort."

"Yeah, ok. Anyway, he's over here." Kit lifted the limp, white armored body and set in down in the clearing. "He was one of our troops. Just like the ones outside of Mygeeto… It kind of makes you wonder if there's anybody in this galaxy who hasn't turned against us."

"Well there were," Mace replied, but they're all dead now. That's not what you should be focusing on anyway."

Kit sighed irritably. "I know, I know, 'there's a great danger here and we're going to perish'."

Mace raised an eyebrow. "I don't know who you're quoting, but I never… worded it that way." He shook his head. "And no… that's not what I meant. The danger I was sensing around this planet… it's concentrated rather heavily in him."

The silence following lasted until Kit could no longer suppress a scoff. "_He _was the terrible danger? You thought we were going to perish from _him_? No wonder I didn't sense it. I don't usually pick up false alarms."

Mace ignored Kit's remark and began walking again, this time lengthening his stride to the point that he was almost running. "Shut up and listen to me. The fallen clones and sith lord are a common enemy. The troops work for him now."

"And?" Kit followed close behind Mace, easily keeping up with the faster pace.

"Do the math, Fisto. That clone trooper probably saw us long before he attempted to kill you, most likely long enough to send a status report to a higher authority. In other words…"

Kit nodded understandingly. "In other words, Palpatine knows we're alive."

"Right"

"Oh…" Kit turned and silently began to lead for awhile; keeping the pace that Mace had set for him. "So what you sensed wasn't _physical_ danger…"

"Right," Mace replied, "not necessarily… but it's about to be."

"Yeah," Kit agreed. "I sense it too."

"You sense something? You're actually using the force? It's about time," Mace commented. "They're on their way. There have to be a couple hundred of them, at least."

"Think we can take them?" Kit stopped walking, closed his eyes, and tuned in. They were close enough to hear, hundreds of feet striking the ground as delicately as possible, attempting to be silent. They were running, and the sound of their footsteps was only increasing in volume as the distance was shrinking.

"Don't get me wrong, Fisto, there's nothing against trying," Mace replied, "but the words 'force no' come to mind."

"Alright, captain. What's the alternative then?"

Mace took a couple of steps backward, toward the thicker region of felucia. He and Kit both faced the direction of the noise. "Well, I have one more plan. It's not stupid elaborate, as most of my plans tend to be, but I think it might just be enough to save us this time."

"And what would that be?"

Mace turned to face his companion, the urgency of the situation beginning to reflect in his eyes. The troops were several yards away, but now visible. Their weapons were raised, and they were coming fast.

"Run."

* * *

**Cool! Now Palpatine knows they're alive. The question is... *dramatic music comes back* Where's Aayla? Will Mace and Kit find a way to get the clones off their tails? How much longer will Obi-Wan be sitting on the sidelines? (considering he's sitting around COMPLETELY unaware of this happening XD Poor guy) And have you picked up on my other fandom? It's pretty subtle, but I've thrown in quotes every now and then 0:-)**

**SEE YOU NEXT TIME!**


	5. Chapter 5

**Hello again!**

**Anybody else getting snow? XD Anyway, thanks Texgirl and Fred for reviewing! My motivation feeds off of reviews, believe it or not. Just getting feedback and hearing what people think about the story, what parts you like the best, ect. It really is appreciated. And I'm gonna do the same thing I did in my last fanfic and give a shoutout to everyone who reviews**

**Fred-104: Yes, absolutely Doctor Who! I enjoyed your rhetorical questions. I promise you they will all be answered… except for the last one. I don't know why you're asking rhetorical questions even though it's the author's job. XD Thank you for the support! **

**Texgirl: It took me awhile to reply because I got sick and then I got busy. And by then my motivation was lacking. But I'm not going to quit on this story until it's done unless everybody hates it. I'm glad you got some humor out of my story. It's supposed to be a bit humorous despite the circumstances. Glad I could accomplish that!**

**Ok, story time! Enjoy!**

* * *

"Excellent plan," Kit huffed as the two Jedi masters sprinted side by side. Although they were gaining ground, it was difficult to run and dodge bullets at the same time. Kit realized this quickly when one of the laser bullets pierced his arm, but he pretended not to notice.

"Don't get smart with me, Fisto," Mace growled. "I'm thinking!"

A few of the troops fell behind, but they were relentless. There were a few, at least fifty or so, that stayed rather close. They pursued the Jedi as if their lives depended on it. It was almost sad seeing them this way. It was as if the clone wars hadn't even existed.

But it simply wasn't the time for reflecting back. It was time for a plan. Kit glanced in Mace's direction expectantly. He really needed to learn to think faster.

"We have to buy time somehow," Mace spat through his teeth. "We can't just keep going like this."

"Ok, so your first plan was a failure then," Kit replied. He stopped talking for a moment to take a few deep breaths. "How much longer are we going to be running exactly?"

Mace glanced briefly at Kit, his face an emotionless stone, but his eyes almost mocking. "Out of shape much, Fisto?"

"No!" Kit growled. "It's just hard… to run… in this kriffing tunic!"

"Think about how the clones must feel," Mace replied. He couldn't necessarily object, though. Kit was right. And the boots didn't help much either.

Kit stopped replying verbally, for he found that his oxygen intake was a bit more important. It was clear that Mace's statement didn't amuse him, but he let his irritation roll off. It was a new approach, Mace noticed. Although Fisto was suffering on the inside, it didn't show anymore. He just ran.

A cry was heard from somewhere behind them. Mace almost disregarded it, but the force was speaking to him. Clearly, Kit was feeling this too. The two exchanged glances. Another cry was heard over the sounds of blasters.

To Mace's surprise, Kit's signature smile spread over his face. The nautolan slowed down, falling behind Mace, and then used the force to perform a perfect back flip. The landing placed him behind the troops, and he attacked.

Mace turned around, igniting his violet blade and swinging it at the nearest clone, killing him instantly. It was a battle now. It didn't take Mace very long to realize how this happened. He looked up. There were two sabers accompanying his, green and blue. He smiled in spite of himself; she was alright.

The fight wasn't easy, but the battle belonged to the Jedi. The large number of troops that had been lost in the chase evened out the fight.

Even during this battle, however, Mace felt a bit distracted. He was watching Kit and Aayla. Now that he knew the truth about them, he couldn't believe he hadn't seen it sooner. The force lived inside them, both of them individually as they fought, but they were one. They were inseparable; every move that Kit made somehow correlated with Aayla's moves, and vice versa.

…And that was ultimately what won the battle. The three Jedi stood silently in the clearing, staring at each other for several moments. Aayla and Kit met each other's eyes, both smiling brightly, as if they had ended the war. If only that were so.

"I'll leave you two alone," Mace murmured quietly. He left the clearing to search for clones that could have been spying on them, or waiting to fire. Whatever the excuse was, really, he just wanted to be by himself for a bit. Thinking time sounded desirable.

Mace silently scolded himself for the slight gnawing feeling in the pit of his stomach. It was, perhaps, a bit of curiosity. It _certainly _wasn't jealousy. Either way, there was a desire for answers. Kit and Aayla were breaking code, but the way that they fought side by side… they made it look so simple. There would be a proper place and time in the near future when Mace would decide to confront Kit about this. For now, it was better to leave it alone.

Meanwhile, Kit was so overjoyed to see his lover alive and well, all he could do was embrace her. Aayla, too, was satisfied standing quietly in Kit's arms. There was plenty of time later for a proper reuniting. For the moment, they were at peace.

"What happened to you?" Kit whispered. The Twi'Lek was certainly well, but it was evident that she had been through a lot.

"They didn't kill me," Aayla replied. "I don't know why. They shot me in the back, but they knew I wasn't dead. They walked away anyway."

"Maybe the clones are more merciful then we thought," Kit suggested. He pressed his forehead against hers, caressing her cheek tenderly with the back of his hand. It was difficult to admit this, but if she had been found dead, he wouldn't have been able to go on. She was too precious to him now.

"Where are the others?" Aayla asked softly. She could tell by the look in Kit's eyes that something was terribly wrong. Whatever it was that drove her clones to turn on her must have been a bigger issue than she thought.

"Most of the Jedi are dead now. Palpatine is a sith lord. He thought that he killed me. And Mace. Fortunately, somehow, the force came through for us. I found Mace not too long later, and now we're trying to find others."

Aayla made a face that made Kit chuckle. "He didn't sense that you _or _mace was alive? Smart sith lord."

"It's just like you to say something like that," Kit remarked with a grin. "Really, though; he's powerful. He took us down rather quickly. Oh yeah. Apparently Anakin is a traitor too."

Aayla shrugged. "Not all that surprising, really," she replied.

"I suppose not. It's sad though. I wonder if Obi-Wan lived to find out about it…" Kit cringed slightly at the thought. Losing a brother to the dark side… it would be almost as bad as losing Aayla to the dark side. Kit couldn't even imaging how painful that would be.

"Last time I checked, he went off to battle it out with Grevious. I wonder how that turned out."

"I… I don't know, honestly." Obi-Wan was one of the greater Jedi, Kit knew, but he was still skeptical. For a Jedi master, Obi-Wan still had a lot to learn. On top of that, Kit had fought General Grevious once before, and it… didn't really turn out as well as he hoped. If he couldn't do it, could Obi-Wan?

Mace returned not to long later. Kit could immediately sense that there was something in his emotions that wasn't quite right. It was a bit too turbid to tell exactly what he was feeling, but that was normal with Mace.

"You alright, Windu?" Kit asked with a good-natured smile. "You aren't jealous, are you? That's a little dangerous."

"I'm _not jealous_," Mace objected, folding his arms over his chest. He narrowed his eyes slightly, casting Kit the intimidating 'shut up or you'll regret it later' look. "However, there is something I would like to address with you on a later date."

Kit tilted his head in curiosity. "Why not now?"

"Now is not the place, nor is it the time to be discussing what… needs to be discussed. Besides, we best be going while we can. If we stick around too much longer, we might have another fleet of troops to deal with."

Aayla rolled her eyes. "Sure, ok, but you know that we could just wipe them out again."

Mace looked away, clamping his teeth shut to hide his momentary frustration in Kit and Aayla's unexplained skill… that he didn't posses. "Yes. Indeed."

* * *

Mace made one last brief perimeter check to make sure that there were no spies while Kit and Aayla exchanged news. As they boarded the ship, Aayla scanned the area uncertainly. It was probably her clone commander who saved her life. She was a bit troubled by what would happen to him if Palpatine found out that this was deliberate. Maybe it wasn't deliberate. She closed her eyes, allowing Kit to rub her shoulders while she deliberated over this.

"You're tired," Kit noted, "and troubled. Care to talk about it?"

Aayla shook her head, but gave him a reassuring smile. "Now is not the place, nor is it the time to be discussing what…" she glanced at Mace and smirked. "…needs to be discussed."

Mace paused at the controls for a moment, tensing as he looked her way. "Really? _Really?_"

Kit and Aayla exchanged glances before turning to him at the same time, smug as ever. "Yes. Indeed," they replied in unison.

"You can make fun of me all you want, but that's not going to change the fact that you need me." Mace started the ship irritably, taking off into deep space, on a course that seemed rather similar to Kit and Aayla.

"Aren't we headed to Mygeeto?" Kit asked. "I thought we were looking for Ki."

"We will," Mace replied through his teeth. "In the meantime, we're going back to Courescant. I couldn't reach Master Mundi on our way to Felucia. I did, however, receive a message from Shaak Ti. She is alive and well, but we'd best be going to get her before that changes."

"Yeah. Good plan, good plan," Kit admitted. "Good to hear we found another. In the meantime, am I needed? You know, copilot or anything like that."

Mace sighed. "No. You two can get some rest. It's around nightfall around the Jedi temple. We should arrive by morning."

Aayla walked to the back end of the ship without objection. Kit turned to follow her, but was stopped one more time by Mace.

"Oh, and Kit? Keep to your own rooms please."

Kit's shoulders slumped slightly. "Ok."

"Is that a lie?" Mace challenged.

"Possibly." Kit shrugged. "There's only one bedroom."

Mace sighed. "That's a lie."

"Ok… well… the other one is yours."

"Also a lie." Mace leaned back, taking a deep breath to conceal any negative emotion. "Tell you what. I may be leading this operation, but I'm no dictator. Do whatever you want, but if I get so much as a hint of your love-drunk energy radiating from that room, there will only be one survivor on this ship. Me."

Kit laughed. "Ok, ok. I get it."

"I mean it."

"I hear you loud and clear," Kit promised. He retreated into the room Aayla disappeared into, leaving Mace alone with his thoughts.

Shaak Ti… that would make four survivors total…. Mace sighed. The number wasn't preferential, but it was better than being alone. Maybe, just maybe, there would be a fighting chance. Mace stretched his muscled in preparation for a long night of flying. True, autopilot could take them to Courescant, but with the danger of a sith lord on the loose, one could never be too careful.

The peace, unfortunately, didn't last long for Mace. In the next couple of minutes, he found himself bombarded with, as he calls it, 'love-drunk energy'. It filled the room; feelings of trust and safety and love all mixed together in an overwhelming sea of… well… mush.

"Dammit, Fisto."

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**Ok, this was the most fun of all of my chapters so far XD I apologize for the fluffy stuff, but that was surprisingly satisfying to write as well 0:-)**

**Oh! And I know that technically Anakin killed Shaak. Is this mentioned in the movie? No. Therefore I do not care. Yay! **

**See you next time! And PLEASE REVIEW! I LOVE YOU!**


	6. Chapter 6

**Hello everybody. *Flexes fingers and adjusts keyboard* I'm at school at the moment, so I really shouldn't be working on this, but I've already received a few PMs from people wondering where I am, so I figured Martin Luther King Jr. can wait. If you want to know, I recently got a new job that demands every moment of my life that I'm not in school, so I literally have no free time. But I'm not going to complain about that right now; you guys have a chapter to read XD**

**Fred-104: Don't forget that quite a bit of time has passed by now. Aayla is not in full health, but is mostly recovered. And I guess I didn't go much into how she received medical attention because I don't know. *sheepish grin* I'll leave that to your imagination. Thank you for your review!**

**Guest: I know who you are XD Thanks for the review. Glad you liked my story so far **

**MyNoseAgreesWithMe: That's the video game. I know; my brother plays it a lot. I'm not basing any of this off of video games either, but thanks for pointing that out. **

**Vana Jedi: Yes, thanks for your random facts XD I got that now. I'm learning that depending on where you get your facts from, especially with the topic of Star Wars, there are a lot of contradictories. **

**ANYWAY, that's all I have to say. Thanks for putting up with me XD Now, on to the chapter.**

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**ALSO, NOTE THAT THE CHARACTER'S VIEWS TOWARD EACH OTHER DO NOT ALWAYS REFLECT MY VIEWS. So don't criticize me about that stuff either ^_^**

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"Secura," Mace addressed absentmindedly. It had been a long flight; morning was dawning on what was left of the Jedi temple, and the young Twi'lek was just waking up. She moved silently to the copilot seat and positioned herself with equal emptiness next to Mace.

"Master Windu," she replied softly. There seemed nothing more that she could say. Even with Mace's concealed fatigue, he could sense with little difficulty that something was wrong.

"You're troubled," he noted. "Is everything alright?"

"Everything will be alright… in time," she murmured. "I'm happy. I mean, I'm glad that you and Kit are alive."

"And?" he pushed. "I know that there's more."

"I'm worried," she admitted. "I guess I'm afraid that the sith lord might bounce back and strike our group." She sighed and stared out the window. "Kit almost died. I'm scared of losing him."

"It's all about him, isn't it? You can't worry about the republic? Yourself? _Only _Kit," Mace responded impassively. It wasn't intended as direct criticism necessarily, but as an observation. However, he hadn't necessarily realized that he was speaking out loud until Aayla retorted.

"Have a heart, Windu. You don't know what it's like to love. You're afraid to love."

There they go with fear again. Mace narrowed his eyes as he prepared the ship for landing. "I'm not afraid, Aayla, alright? I don't fear; fear is of the dark side. It's weakness… And come on; you already know I don't have a heart. Must you bring it up?" The last part was mostly intended to lighten the mood. It was surprisingly effective. Aayla turned and looked at him for the first time that morning, a teasing smile playing over her lips.

"There are people in your life that you care about, therefore you do so have a heart," she objected. "It's just very, very… _very_ small… and dry. And shriveled up, and underused."

"Ok, enough already. I get the point. Instead of lecturing me on love and loved ones, why don't you go wake up yours. His indolence doesn't change the fact that we need him."

Aayla nodded. "Fine. He's not lazy, though. He's just tired. I'm sure we all are."

"No, not all of us." Mace worked on landing the ship as Aayla disappeared into the bedroom. "Some of us don't have time to be tired."

Kit approached a couple of minutes later, his stride slowed slightly with fatigue. Aayla was by his side, as was expected. The way that the two interacted was beginning to sicken Mace. Being the leader _and _the third wheel wasn't exactly an easy role to follow.

"Put a shirt on, Kit," Mace scolded. "You look like a green hobo."

"Oh," Kit replied, smirking drowsily with sarcasm. "Sorry mom. I didn't realize I was offending anybody."

Mace rubbed his temples with irritation. "Are you really making fuss over getting dressed? How old are you?"

"I'm not 'making a fuss' over 'getting dressed', Kit objected. He did his best to keep his tone as reasoning as possible without sounding submissive. He opted to achieve this by folding his arms over his chest stubbornly as he spoke. "I'm 'making a fuss' over you telling me what to do. If you want to believe that you're going to boss us around all the time, you can believe that. It doesn't mean we're going to listen to you."

"Am I being unreasonable?" Mace growled. It seemed that Kit was really just purposefully making things difficult.

"Not at all," Kit replied. "You're just being bossy. You shouldn't worry about my doings so much; you have plenty to think about, like finding the most efficient way to pull your head out of your ass before it gets stuck up there."

"You're five years old," Mace concluded.

"Says the one who's been complaining since we started this mission," Kit retorted. "And on top of that, your decision-making sucks. Just because 'by the book' you're 'stronger' than me doesn't mean you're a good leader. Your brain is the weakest muscle in your body, followed closely by your-"

"My heart," Mace interrupted. "You're insults are becoming repetitive. For someone as quick witted as you, I'm disappointed."

"You _want _insults now? Good," Kit replied. "I have a whole kriffing list of them, purple gay lord."

"How about something I haven't heard before."

Kit took an assertive step toward Mace. "Names like circus monkey? Insulting facts like the fact that you're a hopeless Yoda's Pet? Or how about the game I always find myself playing when I'm stuck on a mission with you: 'Where's Baldo?' Or maybe…"

"Boys!" Kit and Mace both jumped in surprise at Aayla's interjecting scream. Kit turned to face her immediately, Mace turned away.

"Sorry, Aayla." Kit looked from his lover back to Mace. "This kind of thing is… normal. For us."

Aayla narrowed her eyes. "Well it better stop being normal," she threatened, first looking at Kit, and then at Mace, "or _I'm _going to the only survivor on this ship."

"Might I suggest…" Mace began. He didn't get far before Aayla cut him off.

"No. You may not 'suggest'. Every second that you two are wasting bickering with each other is a second that we could be using to rescue the other Jedi. Before it's too late, might I add?"

Mace crossed his arms. "That's exactly what I was-"

Aayla put a finger on Mace's lips to silence him, which was blatantly unappreciated. However, for the sake of a peaceful conclusion, he chose not to fight with her.

The day was only becoming more chaotic as it progressed. The current situation, though, was just mild enough to amuse Shaak Ti when she boarded the ship on her own. As it seemed to be natural for the discordant trio, nobody noticed Shaak's presence until she spoke.

"Let the poor man talk, Aayla," she began. The three turned to face her in awe. "And Mace, at least be nice to Kit. With the number of times he's saved your life, you at least owe him that." Mace glanced at the ground awkwardly as she concluded her entrance speech. "And Kit? Put a shirt on. You look like a green hobo."

"I'm a sexy green hobo," Kit replied with a shrug. "But hey; if you insist."

"Nobody said you weren't attractive," Shaak reasoned. "You just look homeless."

"And green," Mace added. "Oh, and Kit? You're not attractive."

"Aww, thank you Mace," Kit scoffed as he departed to find clothes.

After he was gone, Mace focused his attention back on Shaak. "How did you get in here, anyway?"

"Window," she replied. "I was getting impatient with my welcoming party, or lack thereof."

"Sorry about that." Mace turned to look in the direction Kit departed in. "Things will hopefully sort out now that you're here. I think all we really needed was one more person's input. On top of that, it'll be nice talking to somebody who isn't Kit and/or talking about Kit 27/7."

Shaak rolled her eyes good naturedly. "You love Kit. Don't pretend that you don't; I can sense it. He's family to you."

"I deny everything that you just said, two words in particular."

"Sorry to hear that."

Aayla, in that tense moment, seemed the only person genuinely interested in Shaak's previous whereabouts. "Did you see the sith lord? Are you hurt?"

"No, Aayla. I'm not hurt. I appreciate your concern, though. And no, I haven't seen him yet. I do fear his power, though," she admitted. "He took down four great Jedi, and although two survived, you and I barely replace the two who died. We aren't strong enough yet to battle him."

"That's why we're going to find more survivors," Mace replied. "I don't know where to go next, though. I have a gut feeling that we should check Tatooine."

Kit was laughing as he re-entered the room. "Tatooine?! There were no missions assigned to Tatooine. Jedi don't _usually _go to Tatooine. What kind of bright idea is that?"

"Yeah, I guess you're right." Mace murmured thoughtfully. "Okay, then. No Tatooine. At least not yet. We're going to have to make a plan before we go running around the galaxy again though."

"I agree to that," Kit said with an approving nod. Shaak and Aayla seemed to approve as well, though Shaak couldn't refrain from addressing Mace and Kit's agreement.

"Well," she said with light laughter, "there's a first time for everything."

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**And now the author goes to get ready for work, ladies and gentlemen...**


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